Tongue protector device



Feb. 6, 1940. R. J. GUNDERSON TONGUE PROTECTOR DEVICE Filed Feb. 7, 1938J2 Z415 fizzezzJGwzcZeraazz Patented Feb. 6,1940

TONGUE PROTECTOR DEVICE Reuben J. Gunderson, Chicago, 111;, assignor toAnimal Tongue Protector, Inc., Chicago, 11]., a corporation of IllinoisApplication February 7, 1938, Serial No. 189,083

16 Claims.

The present invention relates generally .to tongue protector devices.invention relates to that type of device which serves to protect thetongue of a hog carcass 6 against mutilation or puncture by the teethduring machine dehairing of the carcass and comprises a tongue holdingor retaining member and a plurality of rearwardly divergenttoothequipped spring metal arms which are connected 10 i at their frontends to the member and are adapted to be contracted or brought togetherduring insertion of the device into the mouth of the carcass and uponrelease thereof spring outwards in such manner as to engage the adjacentI5 portions of the mouth of the hog and hold the member in its operativetongue holding or retaining position.

One object of the invention is to provide a tongue protector device ofthis type which effectively and efiiciently fulfills its intended purpose and is an improvement upon, and has certain advantages over,that'which is shown in and forms the subject matter of an applicationfor United States Letters Patent, filedby me Febru- 25 ary 23, 1937,Serial No. 127,059.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tongue protector deviceof the type under consideration in which the tongue holding andretaining member is formed of strong flexible ma- 3 ;,terial, such ascanvas, and isso attached to the spring metal arms that'when the deviceis in its operative position it surrounds or encases the front end ofthe tongue and prevents the latter from swinging sidewise intoengagement with the 35teeth'of the carcass. v A further object of theinvention is to provide a tongue protector device of the type andcharacter under consideration in which the spring metal arms are four innumberand are arranged and connected together in such manner that whenthe device is in its operative position one ,arm operates to engage theroof of the mouth of the cracass, two arms operate to engage the sidesof the mouth and the fourth operates to engage the front portion of thelower jaw at a point adjacent to the tip of the tongue.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a hog carcasstongue protector device which is generally of new and improved construc-5 tion and may bemanuiactured at a low and reasonable cost as well asapplied and removed with facility. a v

Other objects of the invention and the various advantagesandcharacteristics of ,the present protector device will be apparentfrom a con:

More particularly the (Cl. 17-1) v sideration of the following detaileddescription.

The invention consists in the several novel fea tures which arehereinafter set forth and are more particularly defined by claims at theconclusion hereof. 1 l e y In the drawing which accompanies and forms apart of this specification or disclosure and in which like numerals ofreference denote corresponding parts throughout theseveral views:

Figure l is a perspective of a tongueprotector device embodying theinvention; Figurezis a fragmentary vertical longitudinal sectional viewof the device, illustrating in detail the manner in Which the canvastongue holding or retaining member is connected to the rearwardlydivergent'springmetal arms;

Figure 3 is a verticallongitudinal sectional view showing the device inits operativeposition within the mouth of a hog carcass and illustratingthe manner-in whichtwo of-the spring metal arms serve as a result ofinward bending thereof during manipulation of the device intoitsopera-ytive position, to grip yieldinglyor resiliently the interior of themouth ofthe carcass'and thus hold the tongue holding member place.

Figure 4 is a horizontallongitudinal sectional 2 view showing the devicein its operative position and illustrating the manner in which the othertwo spring metal arms are adapted to engage-the sides'of. the. mouthofthe ,carcass and coact with 30, the two arms shown in Figure 3 to holdthe cloth I member in enveloping relation with the front or tip end ofthe carcass tongue.

Figures 5 and 6 are top and bottom perspective viewsuespectively, of theclip for holding the 5 spring metalarms against sidewise displacementwith respect to oneanother;

Figure '7 is a detail sectional view on the line l-'l of Figure l; and1,: l Figure 8 is a plan view of the cloth tongue holding or retainingmember prior to attachment to the spring metal arms. e 1 Q l i T I Thedevice which is shownfin the drawing constitutes the preferredembodiment of the inven tion. It is adapted to hold inrplace and preventmutilation, puncture or teeth slashing ofjlthe tongue 'I of a hogcarcass C during machine clehairing of the carcass and comprises a tonue holding or retainingmember 9' andifour arms H), H, 12 and I3 forholding the member Sin s operative position as hereinafter described. 1'The tongue holding or retainingmember 9'. is formed of flexiblematerialsuch as canvas, and l is shaped to form a pocket for the front end ofthe tongue of the carcass. It isfadapted to be washed and sterilizedafter each use .of the device and is so shaped and designed that itembodies a rounded tip portion I4, a top portion I5, a pair of sideportions I6 and a bottom portion I l. The top portion. it extendsrearwardly from the tip portion M and is adapted when the protector isin its operative position, as shown in Figure 3, to overlie the frontportion of the tongue and protect the top portion ofthe tongue fromengaging the teeth in the upper jaw of the carcass C. The side portionsIt extend rearward- 1y from the tip portion Id and are adapted to lap orstraddle the sides of the front end of the tongue T, as shown in Figure4. The bottom portion. I'I extends downwardly and is adapted when thedevice is in its operative position to extend rearwardly as well asdownwardly and to underlie the tip of the tongue, as shownin Figure 3.The top and side portions I5 and I6 are pointed at their rearextremities. The tongue holding and retainingmember 9 is formed from ablank like that shown in Figure 8 of the drawing. Said blank is cut witha V-shaped notch lie and the part thereof which is adapted to form thebottom portion H, and is formed into the member by stitching together orotherwise securing in lapped relation the longitudinal portions of theblank which define the sides of the notch. When such portions arestitched or otherwise secured in place the member is of the desiredshape and has the tip portion M at the inner end of the notch. The sideportions I6 of the member 9 are sufilciently loose so that folds areformed therein when the device is inserted into ,its-joperative positionin the mouth of the hog carcass C. The edges of the cloth member 9 aredoubled back and stitched to form a marginal hem I8 around the member.

The arms I6, I 2, I2 and I3 are formed of spring metal and areexternally disposed with respect tothemember 9. The arms Ill and II areformed from a single bowed or U-shaped strip and are arranged so thattheir juncture point, that is, thebow or bend of the strip, overlies thetip portion Mcf the cloth tongue holding or retaining member 9. The armIil overlies the top portion I5 of the member and extends from the tipportion I to the point. at the extremity of said top portion I5. It isadapted When the device is in its operative position to press'upwardlyagainst the roof of the mouth of the hog carcass and has at its outeror'rear end an upstanding tooth I9 which either penetrates or embedsitself in the roof of the mouth of the carcass and thus secures the armiii in place. The rear end of the arm ii! is connected'to the pointedextremity of the top portion Hi of the member 9 by way of a rivet 28which, as shown in'Figure 1, is located immediately adjacent to thetooth I9 and causes the top portion of the member 9 to move in harmonywitht-he spring metal arm I8. The arm I I is materially shorter than thearm IE]. It extends downwardly from the tip portion I l of the member Qto the extremity of the central part of the bottom portion ll of saidmember and. is connected to said extremity by way of a rivet 2|. Thelower end of arm i I is provided with an outwardly extending tooth 22,which as shown in Figure 3, is adapted when the protector device is inits operative position toextent downwardly and embed itself into thefront portion of the lower jaw. The bow or U-shaped bend between thearms Ii! and II' is connected to the tip portion Id of the member 9 byway of a rivet 23. The arms I2 and I3 are formed from a single U-shapedstrip and extend at substantially right angles to the arms it and II.They extend from the tip portion I4 of the member 9 to the pointedextremities of the side portions Id of said member and are conne'cted tosuch extremities by way of rivets 24. The outer rear ends of the armsare provided with out-turned teeth 25 which are adapted to engagethesides or checks of the mouth of the carcass in suchmanner that the armsi2 and I3 coact with the arms In and II to hold the member 9 in placearound the front end of the tongue T of the carcass. The bow or bend ofthe strip from which thearnis i2 and H! are formed overlies and crossesthe bow or bend of the strip from which 'thearms ii! and ii are formedadjacent to the tip portion M of the member 9 and is secured to such tipportion by way oi the. rivet 23. Before insertion of the device into themouth of the carcass C the arms IE3, H, H! and I3 are adapted to becontracted or. pressed together in the barrel of a gun-type tool likethat which is shown in my aforesaid patent application Serial No.127,059. After proper contraction of the arms the device is insertedinto the mouth of the carcass in such manner as to bring the front endof the tongue T into the pocket which is formed within and defined bythe tongue holding or retaining member 9. Thereafter the arms arereleased by proper manipulation of the tool, and, as the result of theirinherent resiliency, spring outwards into their operative position. Whenthe device is properly positioned within the mouth of the carcass thearm it fits against and is secured by its tooth It to the roof of themouth, the arms I2 and I3 press against the sides of the mouth or cheeksof the carcass and are secured or anchored in place by the teeth 25 attheir outer extremities and the arm lI extends downwardly and rearwardlyand presses against and is connected by its tooth 22 to the front partof the lower jaw of the carcass. As the result of the spring of the armsand the action of the teeth, member 9 is securely held in place and cannot become loose as the result of the blows which are imparted to thecarcass during machine dehairing of the latter. After the machinedehairing operation the device is removed by suitably springing inwardsthearms Ill, lI, I2 and I3. After use the device is Washed andsterilized in any suitable manner so that it is fit for reuse.

In order to prevent sidewise pivotal movement of the arms I2 and I3 withrespect to the arms Ill and II a square clip 26 is provided. This clipis in the form of a sheet metal stamping and is disposed between theinner ends of the arms II] and 5 land the inner ends of the arms I2 andI3, that is, between the bows or bends of the two metallic strips whichform the arms of the device.

It is mounted on the shank of the rivet 23 and is of downwardly andinwardly extending oppositely facing flanges 28. The flanges 21 areintegral with the two opposed side margins of the clip and extend aroundand. grip the side edges of the bow or bend of the U-shaped stripforming the arms I72 and IB- (see Figure 1). The downwardly and inwardlyextending flanges 28 are formed integrally with the other two opposedside margins of the clip 26 and extend around and grip the side edges ofthe U-shaped strip forming the arms Ill and II. As the result of thegripping action of the two pairs of flanges 27 and 28 the four arms ofthe device are efiectively held against sidewise displacement withrespect to one another.

tooth embed itself in, a portion of. the mouth l The herein describedtongue protector device consists of but a small number of parts andhence may be manufactured at a low and reasonable cost. It is eflicientin operation due to the fact that the cloth tongue holding or'retainingmember 9 is held in place by four tooth-equipped spring metal mouthengaging arms. In addition the construction in such thatit may beapplied to and removed from the mouth of the carcass with, facility andis not likely to damage any of the important meaty portions of thecarcass mouth. I

.The invention is not to be understood as restricted to the details setforth, since these may be modified within the scope of. the appendedclaims, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patentisz ,1

1. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcass against mutilationduring-machine dehairing of the carcass, comprising a cup-shaped memberadapted to envelop the front endof the tongue and. formed of suchflexible material that it is.

ing of the carcass, comprising a cloth cup-shaped member adapted to besleeved over the front end of the tongue into enveloping relationtherewith,

and means connected to the member and adapted to engage the interior ofthe mouth of the carcass and hold .said member in a substantially fixedposition within the carcass mouth.

3. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcass against mutilationduring machine dehairing,

of the carcass, comprising a cup-shaped member adapted to be sleevedover the tongue into enveloping relation with the latter and formed ofsuch material that itis readily collapsible, and means for holding saidmember in its operative 1 position, including a tooth-equipped springarm connected to, and disposed entirely exteriorly of, the member andadapted to spring against and have its tooth embed itself in a portionof the fleshy part of the mouth of the carcass.

4. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcass against mutilation,comprising a cup-shaped member adapted to be sleeved over the tongueinto enveloping relation with the latter and formed of such flexiblematerial that it is readily collapsible, and means for holding saidmember in a substantially fixed position within the carcass mouth,including a spring arm disposed entirely exteriorly of the member andhaving one end thereof connected to the tip portion of the member'andits other end adapted to spring against and engage yieldingly a portionof the fleshy part of the mouth of the carcass.

5. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcass against mutilation,comprising a cup-shaped member adapted to be sleeved over the tongueinto enveloping relation with the latter, and

means for holding said member in a substantially 1 interior. l 1

6. A device for protecting the tongue of a car.-

cass against mutilation duringmachine dehalring' of the carcass,comprisinga member adapted to engage the tongue and holdit in the lowerjaw,

1 and means for holding said member in its opera ative position,including a downwardlyextending tooth equipped spring arm adapted toengage and press against, and have its tooth embed itself, in, theportion of the lower jaw thatis directly beneath the tip of the tongue'1 1 7. A device for protecting thetongue of a car cass againstmutilation, comprising a flexible member adapted to engage the tongueand hold it in the lower jaw, and means for holding said member in itsoperative position, including a downwardly extending spring arm havingthe upper end thereof connectedto said member and its lower end providedwith a tooth: and adapted to engage yieldingly, and have itstooth embeditself in, the front portion of said lower jaw of A the carcass.

8. A device for protecting the tongue of acar- 1 cass againstmutilation, comprising a cup-shaped member for enveloping the tongue,and means for holding said member in a substantially fixed positionwithin the carcass mouth, including adownwardly extending spring armhaving the upper end thereof connected to the tip portion of said'member and its lower end adapted to engage and press against the frontportion of the lower jaw of the carcass.

9. A device for protecting thetongue of a carcass against mutilation,comprising a flexible. cup-shaped member for enveloping the tongue,"

and means for holding said member in a substantially fixedpositionwithin the mouth of the carcass, including a downwardly extending springarm having the upper end thereof riveted tothe tip portion of saidmember and its lower end provided with a tooth and adapted to engageyieldingly, and have its tooth embed itself in, the.

front portion of the lower jaw of the carcass.

10. A device for protecting the tongueof a carcass against mutilation,comprising a cup-shaped member adapted to envelop the tongue and formedof such flexible material that it is readily collapsible, and means forholding said member 1 in a substantially fixed position within thecarcass mouth, consisting of a plurality of divergent spring armsdisposed entirely exteriorly of the member and having the inner endsthereof connected together adjacent to the tip portion of said memberand their outer ends connected to different portions of the margin ofthemember and adapted to engage yieldingly different portions of theinterior of the mouth of the carcass.

11. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcass against mutilation,comprising a cupshaped member adapted to envelop the tongue and formedof such flexible material that it is 'readily collapsible, and means forholding said member in a substantially fixed position within the carcassmouth,consisting of a plurality of divergent spring arms extending indifferent directions from the tip portion of the member and having theirinner ends connected togetherand to said tip portion and their outerends connected to the marginal portion of the member and adapted toengage 'yieldingly different portions of the interior of the mouth ofthe carcass,

12. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcass. against mutilation,comprising a cupshaped member for enveloping the tongue, and

means for holding said memberv in a substantially straddling, rearwardlydivergent spring arms having the inner ends thereof connected togetheradjacent to the tip portion of the member and their outer ends adaptedto be pressed together in connection with insertion of the device intothe carcass mouth and upon release thereof to spring apart intoengagement with the sides of the mouth of the carcass.

13. A device for protecting the tongue of a hog carcass againstmutilation during machine dehairing'of the carcass, comprising aflexible cupshaped member for enveloping vthe tongue, and means forholdingsaid member in a substantially fixed position within the carcassmouth, including a pair of laterally spaced, memberstraddling,rearwardly divergent spring arms having the inner ends thereof connectedtogether and: to the tip portion of the member and their outer endsconnected to the marginal portions of the sides of the member andadapted to be pressed together in connection with insertion of thedevice' into the carcass mouth and upon release thereof to spring apartinto engagement with the sides of said carcass mouth.

--14-. A device for protecting the tongue of a carcassagainstmutilation, comprising a pair of U-shaped spring metal stripsextending at subtially right angles to one another, and having the bowedcentral portions thereof crossing one another and riveted-together andtheir outer ends forming arms adapted to be pressed together inconnection with insertion of the device into the mouth of the carcassand'upon release thereof to spring apart into engagement with differentportions of the. mouth interior, and clip means ap plied to the crossedcentral portions of the strips and serving to hold said strips againstrelative sidewise displacement.

15. A device for protecting the tongue of" a carcass against mutilation,includinga pair of U- shaped. spring; metal strips extending atsubstantially right angles toone another, and. having the bowed centralportions thereof crossing one another and riveted together and theirouter ends shaped to form tooth-equipped outwardly divergent arms andadapted to be pressed together in connection with insertion of thedevice into the mouth; of the carcass and upon release thereof tospring; apart into engagement with different portions of the mouthinterior, and a metallic clip mounted on the rivet between the crossedcentral portions of the strips and provided with pairs of opposedoppositely extending flanges in engagement with the side edges of saidcentral portions of the strips and serving to hold said strips againstrelative lateral displacement.

16; A device for protecting the tongue of a hog carcass againstmutilation during machine dehairing of the carcass, comprising acup-shaped canvas member for enveloping the outer end of the tongue,means for holding the member in substantially fixed position withinthecarcass mouth consisting of a plurality of laterally spaced spring armsextending rearwardly and in a divergent manner from the tip portion ofthe member and having their inner ends riveted together and to said tipportion and their outer ends connected to different portions of themargin of the memher and adapted to spring outwards into engagement withdifferent portions of the interior of the month of'the carcass, and clipmeans mounted on the rivet and applied to said inner ends of the arms soas to hold said arms against lateral or sidewise displacement one withrespect to the others.

REUBEN J. GUNDERSON.

